The Vatican Information Service is a news service, founded in the Holy See Press Office, that provides information about the Magisterium and the pastoral activities of the Holy Father and the Roman Curia...[+]

Last 5 news

Wednesday, March 25, 2015

Vatican City, 25 March 2015 (VIS) –
On the solemnity of the Annunciation, during this Wednesday's general
audience held in a rain-soaked St. Peter's Square, the Pope announced
to the faithful that today would be a special catechesis, a pause for
prayer during his path of reflections on the family.

“On 25 March, the Church solemnly
celebrates the Annunciation, the beginning of the mystery of the
Incarnation. The Archangel Gabriel visits the humble girl from
Nazareth and announces that she will conceive and give birth to the
Son of God. By this announcement the Lord illuminates and strengthens
Mary's faith, as He will also do for her spouse Giuseppe, so that
Jesus may be born in a human family. This is beautiful: it shows us
how deeply the mystery of the Incarnation, as God wished it to be,
includes not only conception in the womb of the mother, but also the
fact of being welcomed into a true family. Today I would like to
contemplate with you the beauty of this bond, of this, God's
condescension, and we can do so reciting together the Hail Mary,
which in its first part includes the words the Angel addressed to the
Virgin”.

After praying the Hail Mary with all
those present, Francis commented that today in many countries is the
Day for Life, and that twenty years ago on this date St. John Paul II
signed his encyclical “Evangelium Vitae”, in which the family
“occupies a central role, inasmuch as it is the womb of human
life”.

“The word of my venerated predecessor
reminds us that the human couple has been blessed by God since the
beginning to form a community of love and life, to whom the mission
of procreation has been entrusted. Christian couples, by celebrating
the sacrament of Marriage, indicate they are willing to honour this
blessing, with the grace of Christ, for all their life. The Church,
for her part, solemnly commits to caring for the family that is thus
born, as a gift from God for her own life, in good times and bad: the
bond between the Church and the family is sacred and inviolable. The
Church, as a mother, never abandons her family, even when it is
debased, hurt and humiliated in many ways. Not even when it gives in
to sin or drifts away from the Church; she will always do everything
to seek to cure and heal it, to invite it to convert and be
reconciled with the Lord”.

If this is her task, the Pontiff
observed, then it appears clear how much prayer the Church needs in
order to be able to carry out this mission. “A prayer full of love
for the family and for life. A prayer that knows how to rejoice with
those who rejoice, and to suffer with those who suffer”. The Holy
Father explained that he and his collaborators had decided to propose
a renewal of the prayer for the Synod of Bishops on the family, and
asked all present to continue to recite it until October, when the
Synod assembly dedicated to the family is due to take place.

“I would like this prayer, like the
entire Synod path, to be inspired by the Good Shepherd's compassion
for his flock, especially for those people and families who for
various reasons are 'harassed and helpless, like sheep without a
shepherd'. In this way, supported and inspired by the grace of God,
the Church will be able to be even more committed, and even more
united, in her witness of the truth of God's love and His mercy for
the world's families, without exception, both inside and outside the
fold”.

“I ask you, please, to ensure that
your prayer is not lacking. All of us – the Pope, cardinals,
bishops, priests, men and women religious – we must all pray for
the Synod. We need this, not chatter! I encourage even those who feel
distant to pray too, and those who are not used to doing so. This
prayer for the Synod on the family is for the good of all of us. I
know that this morning an image has been given to you, which you now
hold in your hands. I invite you to keep it and carry it with you
always, so that over the coming months you can recite the prayer
often, with holy insistence, as Jesus asked us. Now, let us pray
together:

Vatican City, 25 March 2015 (VIS) –
At the end of today's general audience, the Pope greeted those
present in various languages. In Italian he addressed a group of
workers from the province of Vibo Valentia, in the Calabria region,
which is currently experiencing a situation of economic crisis.

“I express my concern and closeness
to your persistent problems. I make a heartfelt appeal that the logic
of profit may not prevail over that of solidarity and justice. At the
centre of every issue, especially in relation to work, there must
always be the human person and his or her dignity. Being unable to
bring bread to the table means losing one's dignity. This is the
crisis of our time, especially for the young who, without work, have
no prospects for the future and may become easy prey to criminal
organisations”.

Vatican City, 25 March 2015 (VIS) –
Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin has sent a telegram of
condolences to Bishop Jean-Philippe Nault, France, on behalf of the
Holy Father following the air crash that occurred in the area
yesterday, in which all 150 passengers and crew were killed.

“Upon learning of the tragic air
accident that occurred in the region of Digne, claiming numerous
victims, including many schoolchildren, His Holiness Pope Francis
participates in the suffering of the families, expressing his
closeness in prayer. He prays for the eternal repose of the departed,
commending them to God's mercy, so that He might welcome them into
his house of peace and light. He expresses his profound sympathy for
all those affected by the tragedy, and for the rescuers who have to
intervene in such difficult conditions. The Holy Father asks the Lord
to bring strength and consolation to all and, as a pledge of solace,
invokes divine blessings in abundance”.

Vatican City, 25 March 2015 (VIS) –
On Sunday 21 June the Pope will visit Turin. Francis will arrive in
the Italian city at 8 a.m. and, half an hour later, will meet with
representatives of the world of work in the Piazzetta Reale. From
there, he will move on to the Cathedral where he will pray before the
Holy Shroud and before the altar of Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati. At
10.45 a.m. he will celebrate the Eucharist in Piazza Vittorio and
will recite the Sunday Angelus prayer.

Following Mass, the Pope will proceed
to the Archbishop's residence to lunch with young detainees from the
“Ferrante Aporti” penitentiary for minors, several immigrants and
homeless people, and a Rom family.

At 2.40 p.m. he will visit the
Sanctuary of the Consolata, where he will withdraw for a few minutes
in private prayer. At 3 p.m., in the Basilica of Our Lady Help of
Christians, where he will meet with Salesians and the Daughters of
Our Lady Help of Christians. An hour later, in the Church of
Cottolengo, he will meet with the sick and disabled.

Back in Piazza Vittorio, at 6 p.m., he
will meet with young people of the city, after which he will retire
to the archbishop's residence.

On Monday 22, at 9 a.m., he will visit
the Valdese Temple. Upon returning to the archbishop's residence,
where he will meet privately with some of his relatives. He will
celebrate a Holy Mass with them in the Chapel and will lunch with
them. Before his departure from “Torino Caselle” airport, he will
pay a short visit to the members of the Committee of the Shroud, the
organisers and supporters of his visit.

Vatican City, 25 March 2015 (VIS) –
This morning a press conference was held in the Holy See Press Office
to present the upcoming exhibition of the Holy Shroud of Turin
(Turin, 19 April – 24 June 2015), on the occasion of the second
centenary of the birth of St. John Bosco, which will be specially
dedicated to the young and to those who suffer. The Pope will also
make a pilgrimage to Turin from 21 to 22 June.

The speakers at the conference were the
archbishop of Turin, Cesare Nosaglia, papal guardian of the Shroud;
Elide Tisi, mayor of the city; Roberto Gottardo, president of the
diocesan commission for the Shroud; and Rev. Luca Ramello, director
of youth pastoral ministry for the diocese.

Archbishop Nosaglia explained that the
Shroud represents, for the Universal Church, a point of reference of
the first order for the life of the faith of many people and
communities, who in this image recognise the signs of the Lord's
passion, of Jesus who “inspires our lives and challenges us to
fully realise our deepest vocation. Therefore”, he added “the
theme I have chosen for the next exhibition is 'The Greatest Love':
the gift of salvation which is made visible in our response, the
worship of God and service to our brothers”.

“The Pope's trip, like the exhibition
as a whole, is also intended to give thanks for 'the Saint of youth',
and for the service that the Salesian family carries out in Turin and
throughout the world in the fields of education, mission, sport and
communication. … The world of youth is particularly involved in the
Salesian mission, and during the Pope's visit there will be a sort of
mini Youth Day, a series of meetings, encounters, prayer, moments of
celebration that help resume contact with the young. An extraordinary
sign will be the presence of the Word Youth Day Cross, which will
make a stop in Turin during its journey to Krakow”.

Another peculiarity of this exhibition
is attention to the world of those who suffer, and therefore this
year sick or disabled pilgrims and those who accompany them will be
able to benefit from new hospitality structures based on the model of
the “Accueil” in Lourdes. It is also hoped that the Pilgrimage to
the Shroud will offer an opportunity to partake in the sacrament of
Reconciliation, as a “concrete sign of forgiveness” and, as on
previous occasions, “in various places priests will hear the
confessions of the faithful in all the world's major languages”.

The prelate emphasised that the 2015
exhibition has been organised according to the criterion of
austerity, in a period of severe economic and social crisis
throughout the area, and he thanked those entities that have offered
their cooperation to help limit costs as far as possible. He also
announced that during the display of the Shroud, Beato Angelico's
celebrated “Lamentation over the Dead Christ” will be exhibited
in the diocesan museum, on loan for the occasion from the city of
Florence.

“As you are aware, visiting the
Shroud is completely free. Traditionally many pilgrims at the leave a
simple offering at the end of their journey, deposited with full
discretion at the exit of the Cathedral and in the places of
confession. On this occasion all the offerings will be given to the
Pope when he is with us in Turin on 21 June. We will ask him to use
them, naturally with full freedom, for a work, or a project to assist
the poorest or neediest”.